Town Council meeting report

The Cathlamet Town Council met on Monday, September 16. After the Agenda was approved, the meeting was open for public comments.

Public Comments: 1. Strong Park Clean Up

will continue Tuesday, September 17, 2024,

at 10:00 a.m. Volunteers should bring gloves,

clippers and be ready for some ivy cutting. 2.

People may have seen that the "Cathlamet

Area News" Facebook page is full of expressions of frustration on the lack of communication of changes to the Swimming Pool schedule.

A Zoom participant expressed that same frustration and hopes that communication will be

the focus for the Pool Advisory Committee and

planning for next year. The new Superintendent of Public Works, Jason Tibbit, was at the

meeting and expressed his dedication to changing things for the better for 2025. 3. What is

the best way to find information on the Strong/

Waterfront Park "Project Schedule"? 4. What

is the best way to ask questions to the Town Attorney? 5. Thank you to everyone that hosted

the WAAG 5th Anniversary Party in Erickson

Park. 6. Clarification on Resolution 452-24 vs.

Resolution 434-23.

The Town Council unanimously agreed that

the Mayor could move forward with negotiating a franchise renewal agreement with Charter/Spectrum.

The Resolution to amend meeting rules and

procedures was tabled because of confusion

over whether Resolution 434-23 replaced Resolution 452-24 or vice versa. These resolutions

are about Town Council meetings and how to

create a plan to ensure that everyone at the

meeting is civil, respectful, and if not, how to

maintain order.

A memo from the Clerk-Treasurer mentioned that the structure of the utility rates

from a couple of years ago had changed and

rates will need to increase next year. Also, the

Clerk-Treasurer is concerned that the "general

fund balance is getting too low due to all the

budget amendments this year."

The Project Manager's report raised questions of timing, funding, costs to the Town,

noise complaints for the Skate Park, Old Town

Hall clean up, and raw wastewater improvements.

The Librarian's Report documented 14 new books and a huge increase of books being checked

out since last year. The Library offers help with

employment applications, finding housing, bill

paying, healthcare, and TTRPG (tabletop role

playing games-which are Grant Funded.)

The Chief of the Cathlamet Fire Department

reported that the Huckleberry Ridge fire is

nearly contained and will not impact Wahkiakum County nor the Town's watershed. Thank

you to everyone who fought it.

Some clarification from the Town Attorney:

It is okay for Town Council members to be in a

social setting as a group. Of course they can't

discuss Town issues, but they can enjoy time together talking about grandkids, the score of the

football game, and anything else the citizens of

the Town of Cathlamet chat about on a regular

basis.

Council member shout outs: Looking forward

to a new organizational chart with names. We

no longer have a liaison to the Marine Resource

Committee, there are some issues and repair

work needed in Strong/Waterfront Park, and

Queen Sally's Park is looking good, but ADA access needs to be addressed.

You can find the Cathlamet Town Council

Agenda on their website: https://www.townofcathlamet.com/agendas-minutes and click the

"Packets" button on the right of the banner, and/

or watch the meetings on YouTube at https://

http://www.youtube.com/@TownofCathlamet. If you

get on their email list, you can always get the

link to join via Zoom. This is your Town, and

many Town decisions impact the County.